Winter cod in shallow kelp bays can be maddeningly localised. I’ve lost count of mornings where I sit on the rocks watching kelp fronds barely move, thinking there’s nothing happening — then, after a well-timed chum slick, the bay comes alive and I’m into cod after cod. Over the years...
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How-To Guides
I watch kelp the way some anglers watch lines on their reels. On exposed rocky...
How-To Guides
I fish estuaries a lot for bass, and low tide is one of those quiet windows...
How-To Guides
I fish long, exposed beaches across Wales, and nothing beats the confidence of...
How-To Guides
Peeler crab is my go-to winter bait for rays. When the water cools and the rays...
I fish long, exposed beaches across Wales, and nothing beats the confidence of a clean, strong braid-to-mono shock splice when you’re casting heavy baits into a stiff onshore wind. Over the years I’ve tried loads of methods — knots, sleeves,...
Peeler crab is my go-to winter bait for rays. When the water cools and the rays move in close, nothing matches that sweet, oily scent and the soft, yielding texture of a well-prepared peeler. The trick is not just buying good crab, but handling it...
Why I map exit corridors before the tide takes the shoreI’ve had a few too many heart-stopping moments on tidal ledges to treat exits as an afterthought. When the sea comes in fast and the rock goes slick, it’s the exits you’ll thank yourself...
Winter in Wales brings cold water, clear tides and hungry cod pushing into bays and kelp beds. For me, peeler crab is one of the most reliable baits for getting bites from big winter cod — if it’s prepared and presented correctly. Below I share...
When I started fishing tidal ledges along the Welsh coast I lost more than a few rigs to sudden blowouts: the kind that yank your sinker into the surf, tangle your trace around submerged rocks, or send your bait ripping across the sand. Over the...
I used to assume that heavier leads automatically meant farther casts from pebble beaches. After a few seasons of re-tuning rigs and breaking more plugs than I cared to count, I swapped to a 30g sliding bomb paired with a 6ft trace and the change...
I’ll cut straight to it: if you want to trigger estuary bass under marina lights with soft plastics you need two things to line up — the right tide and the right light window — and then you must present your lure like a wounded baitfish. Over...
I’ve lost count of the times I’ve watched a bait roll helplessly along a tidal ledge, or seen it snagged on the next swell because my sinker was either too light to hold or so heavy it bounced the bait into the weed. Getting sinker weight right...
I’ve spent more mornings than I can count standing on Welsh cobbles, watching terns spiral and sea foam gather along a line that seemed to hum with life. Over the years I learned to read those small signs — bird behaviour, foam lines, a ripple...
I won't pretend there's a single magic trick to pull double-figure rays off slippery tidal ledges — but after a few seasons of stubborn dawns, soaked waders and the odd ecstatic shout when a big shoulder rolls at the surface, I've learned a...